Join us as we speak with Gaia Gaja, of the renowned Gaja Winery in Italy’s Piedmont region. Having worked at the winery since she was a child, Gaia is the fifth generation of her family to be involved in the winery, and even had a wine named in her honor (Gaia & Rey Chardonnay) by her famous father, Angelo Gaja. Angelo is credited with several innovations in winemaking, including the use of barriques – the 225-liter French oak barrels for aging Barbaresco, the production of single vineyard designations, and he planted Piedmont’s first Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc vineyards.

Founded in 1859 by Giovanni Gaja, the winery now owns 250 acres of vineyards in Piedmont’s Barbaresco and Barolo districts. In 1994, the Gajas acquired their first wine estate in Tuscany, Pieve S. Restituta in Montalcino. The property’s forty acres of vineyards produce two Brunello di Montalcino wines: Sugarille and Rennina. In 1996, the Gaja family purchased a second property in Tuscany, Marcanda, located in the Bolgheri district in the commune of Castagneto Carducci. New plantings of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as Cabernet Franc, Syrah and Sangiovese, cover 250 acres and a state-of-the-art winery was completed on the property in 2002. Beginning in 1996, all of Gaja’s single vineyard wines have been labeled Langhe Nebbiolo D.O.C.

This show was so good, it was kind of like being in a high level college course taught by a top-notch lecturer punctuated by good questions from the smart kids in the class. I loved every minute. Thank you very much.

My guess, Jay, is that folks prefer the close interview with a single interesting winemaker rather than taped lectures from wine events and other stuff peripheral to the wine itself. I know I do. It’s always more interesting to hear a good interview than a lecture. And particularly so if its a person from a very famous winery. (Even if it’s one that makes wine way too expensive for me to consider buying!)

Also it is more interesting to get outside of California for awhile. I certainly understand that it is much easier for you guys to scare up subject matter close to home, but speaking personally, if the interview subjects were

Just to provide another perspective on Doug’s comment, I like all of the program formats, but I have learned more from the seminars and certain interviews than others. The pinot clones seminar, for example, was especially noteworthy. The Burgundy interview with Allen Meadows is another. For me, winemaker interviews are interesting, but not usually of as much learning value. It’s all a matter of opinion and preference, just like the wine.

… no idea why that got cut off. Meant to say that if the interview subjects were less than ten percent California and the rest from other places (foreign and US) I’d prefer it.

Brian’s comment shows that different listeners have different likes and dislikes. Agree with him totally about Meadows, who was amazing. (Got me to subscribe to his publication). Loved Tanzer as well. I find most of the seminars, however, to be sleep-inducing, and more winery-marketing than I can usually stand. A good interview can cut through the marketing speak to get some real insight into what’s going on. Seminars, to me, often reek of puffery, or just end up being “We do wines X,Y,Z, and here’s the history of our winery.” Much of that I can get by going to their website and reading for myself …

Very interesting interview! I was lucky enough to meet her when she was in Montreal last year for a Italian wine tasting event and it was a real treat to discuss about the Gaja winery with her (and also to taste the great Barbaresco 2004 !).

I own a bottle of 1859 Gaja Wine that was given to my father on his
honeymoon in Italy in 1956. My great uncle Vincenzo Infante, who was a
famous painter from a small town in Italy, called, Gioi Chilento was a
good friend of Angelo’s and sent my mother and father to his winery in
1956, to meet him, and have lunch. During lunch, Angelo gave this bottle
to my father as a wedding present. It has been stored in a temperature
controlled basement since 1956, and is in very good shape. I doubt the
wine is still good, but being their first Gaja Vintage, this bottle has
historical significance. There were no labels yet, but the bottle is
stamped in the glass, with Gaja 1859. Any idea how much this bottle is
worth if it were auctioned off? Is there any interest out there, in this
piece of Gaja Winery history?
Shannon O’Neill
President and Winemaker
Maloy O’Neill Vineyardsforni
Paso Robles, California

I had heard that Gaja wines were to be superb. I found a bottle in Siena and bought it for $125. It was a birthday present for myself. I let it age another 5 years before I opened it. It wasn’t nearly as smooth as I had expected it to be. In fact, I have had far less expensive wines that were more satisfying. It’s not that it was a bad wine. I just didn’t think it was worth the price.

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GrapeRadio is a wine talk show. Show topics cover issues such as the enjoyment of wine, wine news and industry trends - the hallmark of the show is interviews with world class guest (winemakers, vineyards owners, wine retail / wholesale leaders, restaurateurs and sommeliers). The scope of the show is international so expect to hear many guests from around the world.

GrapeRadio has received numerous awards and honors including the 2008 James Beard Award for excellence in Journalism.

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